For the event flyer with translations in Arabic, Karen, Spanish and Mandarin, CLICK HERE.

Are you interested in volunteering? Do you want to learn about the organization and where you can help out? Come to Orientation! This will be held in the first hour, 1-2pm.

The second hour (2-3pm) will feature a Training for volunteers who want to get involved with direct service (best practices for communicating with English language learners, and understanding trauma/post-trauma.

To volunteer or donate an item email admin@ithacawelcomesrefugees.org

Join us at Global Roots Play School for a fun time cleaning and prepping the classroom and play spaces! We’re looking for a bunch of eager IWR folks to help make the space beautiful and welcoming for families. More hands will make it easy and all are welcome!

Ithaca Welcomes Refugees and the staff of the Global Roots Play School would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to the over 22 volunteers who gave their time and boundless energy this past Saturday, August 26, to clean up and organize the play school. We could not have done it without you!

What started out as a dusty classroom in desperate need of some serious elbow grease is now a warm, clean, and welcoming space for our first class of young learners. The backyard play area, which had gone a little too far back to nature for safe play, is now prepped for outdoor fun and fresh air.

Hundreds of books were sorted and stacked; toys of every type were cleaned and organized; cubbies, cabinets and the outdoor play sets were scrubbed; and hidden corners saw new light. The sheer amount of energy—and joy—from everyone who showed up reminded us of how lucky we are to live in Ithaca. We cannot wait for our fall session to start next week!

Saturday, July 15th11-2pm
Stewart Park Pavilion, 1 James L. Gibbs Drive, Ithaca NYWe are seeking to build an inclusive community that feels welcoming to everyone, including people from all backgrounds. Whether you have been here for decades or you just arrived recently, please join us to celebrate our diversity and appreciate what connects all of us.

There will be food, music, games, and carousel rides for all ages.

If you would like to bring a dish to pass, you may follow these guidelines:
Beverage – last name begins with A-D
Salads & Sides – last name begins with E-K
Main Course – last name begins with L-S
Dessert – last name begins with T-Z

Indivisible is an award-winning documentary about the fight to reunite families separated by deportation. Imagine growing up in the country you call home without legal status. Or not seeing your family for years because they were deported. Renata, Evelyn, and Antonio were young children when their parents brought them to the U.S. in search of a better life; they were teenagers when their families were deported. Today, they are known as Dreamers. Indivisible takes place at a pivotal moment in their lives, as they fight for a pathway to citizenship and a chance to be reunited with their loved ones. With the future of immigration reform uncertain, will they see their families again?

Accolades:Indivisible premiered at Cinequest Film Festival in San Jose, CA in March 2016 and has since played at 25 festivals, earning the following awards:Best Documentary – Boston International Film FestivalBest Documentary – Kansas International Film FestivalSpecial Grand Jury Award for Inspirational Filmmaking – Arizona Int’l Film FestivalBest Social Issue Documentary – Atlanta DocuFest

Indivisible will screen for the House of Representatives on July 14, 2017 and will have its English broadcast premiere in July 2017.

Share our Table and meet your neighbors! Come enjoy dinner and chat with local members of the Muslim community. All are welcome to a community dinner (vegan options available) and dessert. There is no cost, just the pleasure of your company.

Dinner will be served at 8:30 PM, this event is co-sponsored by The Tompkins County Tourism Program and MRC.

Elyse Semerdjian has graciously offered to spend time with the Ithaca Welcomes Refugees community to share insight on the Syrian people, history, cultures, and customs through her eyes. Please join us for this unique learning opportunity!

A single mother from Syria shows us the consequences of closing America’s doors to families fleeing war. With no answer to her application for resettlement in the US, and every other path to safety closed off, a smuggler’s raft to Europe was the only way out. 8 Borders, 8 Days is their story; the intimate details of why a mother is willing to risk her children’s lives at sea and an immersive experience of their eight-day journey to safety.

Join Ithaca Welcomes Refugees for a screening of 8 Borders, 8 Days, followed by a panel discussion featuring the film director Amanda Bailley and Ithaca Alderperson Ducson Nguyen.

The film is 60 minutes long and is in Arabic with English subtitles. Admission is free, with a recommended donation of $10 to offset the cost of the event.

DESCRIPTIONThe Community Welcoming Team is holding our “Community Welcoming Team Training” again! It will be heldin Dodds Hall at the First Presbyterian Church. (If you come in through the small green door on Court St and down the stairs it is ahead on your left). This is a repeat of the large group training that we did in January at the First Presbyterian Church and the first step in working with the Community Welcoming Team. Please see below for other training requirements.

If you are interested in working with the Community Welcoming Team and did not attend the previously, please mark this training on your calendars!

For more information of what exactly the Community Welcoming Team’s roles are please see pages 18-20 of the Volunteer Packet.